West Wickham

For another place, see West Wickham, Cambridgeshire.

Not to be confused with West Wycombe or West Wykeham.

West Wickham
West Wickham High Street
West Wickham Location within Greater London
Population	14,884 (ward, 2011)[1]
OS grid reference	TQ379660
• Charing Cross	10.3 mi (16.6 km) NW
London borough	Bromley
Ceremonial county	Greater London
Region	London
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	WEST WICKHAM
Postcode district	BR4
Dialling code	020
Police	Metropolitan
Fire	London
Ambulance	London
UK Parliament	Beckenham and Penge
London Assembly	Bexley and Bromley

West Wickham is an area of South East London, England, in the London Borough of Bromley. It lies south of Park Langley, Eden Park, Beckenham and Bromley town centre, west of Hayes and north of Coney Hall, east of Spring Park and Shirley. It is 10.3 miles (17 km) south-east of Charing Cross on the line of a Roman road, the London to Lewes Way. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, West Wickham was in Kent.

History

The Roman site near West Wickham, possibly an open-air market with slight long-term settlement, is probably the site of Noviomagus Cantiacorum.^[2]

West Wickham is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 with the following entry: "In lordship 2 ploughs. 24 villagers have 4 ploughs. 13 slaves; a church; a mill at 20d.; a wood at 10 pigs. Value before 1066 8; later 6: now 13. Godric son of Karl held it from King Edward".^[3] The name dates to Anglo-Saxon and is possibly a corruption of the Latin vicus, denoting an earlier Roman settlement.^[4][5] The 'West' was added in the 13th century to differentiate it from East Wickham, situated some distance away to the north-east.^[4]

The medieval Church of Saint John the Baptist in West Wickham

In Tudor times, the Manor House, Wickham Court, was expanded by the Boleyn family and the area was popular for deer hunting. The Grade I listed building^[6] was built by Sir Henry Heydon in 1469.^[7][4] His wife was Anne Boleyn (Bullen), a daughter of Sir Geoffrey Boleyn, who was Lord Mayor of London in 1469. She was the great-aunt of Queen Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII.^[4] The house was later sold to the Lennard family in 1580.^[4] In 1935, it was sold and adapted for use as an hotel. After World War II, it was sold to the Daughters of Mary and Joseph, an International Congregation of Religious Sisters, and became Coloma College (a teacher training college). This was run by the Daughters of Mary and Joseph until 1978.^[8] From 1978 to 1996 it was occupied by Schiller International University. It later became home to Wickham Court Preparatory School^[4] until 2023 and is now occupied by the St Mary and St John Coptic Orthodox & Centre.

Until the 1900s West Wickham remained a small village. The inter-war period saw rapid development and the transformation of the area into a suburb of London, facilitated by the arrival of the railway station, which opened in 1882.^[4] Much of the formerly extensive West Wickham Common was built over, though a small tract was purchased and preserved by the Corporation of London in 1892.^[4] At the crossroads by the Swan pub formerly stood the Stocks Tree, a large elm tree so named as it lay behind the village stocks. It was damaged during the laying down of sewerage pipes in the 1930s and was moved to Blake Recreation Ground in 1935, but later blew down in a storm.^[5] The tree is commemorated in the village sign and a plaque, both of which stand outside the library, with a piece of the tree on display inside.^[5]

Modern-day West Wickham is an affluent suburb of Greater London, after the London Government Act 1963, which came into effect in 1965, with West Wickham absorbed into the London Borough of Bromley. The area is a fairly typical London suburb, consisting of predominantly 1930s housing, with a row of shops, restaurants and a library along the High Street and another set around the train station area. There are four pubs in the area - The Swan and the Wheatsheaf on the High Street, The Railway by the station and The Real Ale Way micropub, opened in 2021 in Station Road.^[9] There are also several parks, such as West Wickham playing fields (McAndrews), Wickham Park and Blakes Recreation ground.

The Swan Public House, West Wickham, dating to circa 1840 and listed at grade II^[10]

Education

West Wickham (including Coney Hall as it is a district of West Wickham) has four state schools (all primary schools). They are Oak Lodge, Wickham Common, Pickhurst and Hawes Down. St David's Prep and Wickham Court (serving as a nursery, primary school and secondary school) are private schools.^{[citation needed]} In 2012, Wickham Common won a hockey gold medal when they represented Bromley in the London Youth Games.^[11]

There are no secondary schools in West Wickham, but there are some in neighbouring areas. Langley Park School for Boys and Langley Park School for Girls are located in Beckenham, Hayes School is located in Hayes, and Ravens Wood School is located in Keston.

All Saints' Catholic School was a secondary school located on Layhams Road, West Wickham, London Borough of Bromley which closed in 2007 a few years after a major fraud scandal.^[12]

Transport

Rail

West Wickham railway station TfL travel card zone 5, serves the area with services to London Charing Cross, and Hayes.

Buses

West Wickham is served by several Transport for London buses connecting it with areas including Beckenham, Bromley, Croydon, Hayes, Penge, Sydenham and Thornton Heath. Services include routes, 119 (which runs 24/7), 138, 194 and 352.^[13] While Superloop London Superloop SL5 will not stop in West Wickham it will stop near to the town's boundary at both Westmoreland Road, BR2 and Bethlem Royal Hospital, BR3.

Sport and leisure

West Wickham has a non-League football club Glebe F.C. who play at Oakley Road.^[14]

West Wickham is home to Beccehamians RFC a rugby union club founded in 1933 which plays competitive rugby at Sparrows Den^[15] at the bottom of Corkscrew Hill.^[16]

Other clubs nearby include Croydon RFC (formerly Shirley Wanderers), a club that currently competes in Surrey 1, that has a rugby pitch used often for county matches.^{[citation needed]}

West Wickham is well served by green spaces, including Spring Park and Sparrows Den, which are connected to Threepenny Woods. The London Loop walking trail and cycling track go through here. Kelsey Park in the Langley area of neighbouring Beckenham is also considered a local park, as is Addington Park.

Arts and popular culture

Since 1958 the area has had an Arts association^[17] and since 1967 it has had its own community theatre known as Theatre 62 / West Wickham Theatre centre.^[18]

On 1 August 1964, Blakes Recreation Ground hosted a concert featuring Manfred Mann (featuring Paul Jones), The Merseybeats and the Johnny Dankworth Orchestra.^[19]

The town appeared in the 2000 UK television series The 1940s House, with 17 Braemar Gardens taking the starring role as a family lived a World War II experience in a typical London suburb.^[20][4]

Notable people

• William Burnside, mathematician, buried in West Wickham parish church.^[21]
• Michael Carberry, cricketer, attended St John Rigby College.^[22]
• Thomas Carew (1595 at West Wickham – 1640) an English poet, among the 'Cavalier' group.^[23][24]
• Violet Cressy-Marcks, explorer, born and grew up in West Wickham.
• Stephen Dillane, actor, grew up in West Wickham.^[25]
• Gordon Fergus-Thompson, pianist.^{[citation needed]}
• Simon Haynes, author, grew up in West Wickham.
• Charlie Heather, drummer in The Levellers.^{[citation needed]}
• Judy Oakes, athlete.^[26]
• Chris Philp, Conservative politician, grew up in West Wickham.^[27]
• Alan Ridout - composer, born in West Wickham.^[28]
• Henry Hake Seward, architect, buried at St John the Baptist church.^[29]
• Skream, DJ & producer, grew up in West Wickham.^[30]

Gallery

• 
  St Mark's Catholic Church, built 1962-63^[31]
• 
  The Railway pub
• 
  Emmanuel United Reformed Church
• 
  Old Unigate Dairies on Kent Road, built circa 1890 and now listed at grade II^[32]
• 
  St Francis of Assisi Anglican Church on Ravenswood Avenue, built 1935-36^[33]
• 
  Entrance to the West Wickham train station

References

1. "Bromley Ward population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 6 January 2019. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
2. The discovery of the lost Roman town of Noviomagus, at West Wickham, Kent. Brian Philp, Gerald Clewley, Debbie Cooper. Kent Archaeological Rescue Unit, Special Subject Series 26. 2021. ISBN 0947831371
3. [1] Archived 7 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine West Wickham Residents Association
4. Willey, Russ. Chambers London Gazetteer, p 550
5. "Local History". West Wickham Residents Association. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
6. Good Stuff IT Services. "Wickham Court – Bromley – Greater London – England". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
7. "Timeline". Wickham Court. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
8. "Background History of the West Wickham Site". Hmt-uk.org. Archived from the original on 13 October 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
9. "Pubs in West Wickham". WhatPub. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
10. Historic England. "The Swan Public House (1359301)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
11. "Title success for Wickham Common". News Shopper. March 2010. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
12. "Headmistress sentenced to five years for £500,000 theft". 4ni.co.uk. 1 September 2003. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
13. "Map" (PDF). content.tfl.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
14. "Everything we do we always exceed in, says Glebe chairman Rocky McMillan". Kentishfootball.co.uk. 1 July 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
15. "London Gardens Online". www.londongardensonline.org.uk. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
16. Beccehamians RFC
17. "About Us". www.westwickhamarts.org. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
18. "About Us". Theatre 62. 15 August 2013. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
19. "New Musical Express" (904). July 1964: 2. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
20. [2] Telegraph
21. Burnside, W. (2004). Neumann, P.M.; Mann, A.J.S.; Tompson, J.C. (eds.). The Collected Papers of William Burnside: Commentary on Burnside's life and work; Papers 1883–1899. Vol. 1. Oxford University Press. p. 106. ISBN 9780198505860.
22. "Player profile: Michael Carberry". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
23. "Marcks, Violet Olivia Cressy- [née Violet Olivia Rutley; other married name Violet Olivia Fisher]". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). ODNB. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/57179. ISBN 978-0-19-861412-8. Retrieved 19 August 2020. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
24. Gosse, Edmund William (1911). "Carew, Thomas" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 5 (11th ed.). p. 328.
25. Powell, Lucy (12 June 2010). "Stephen Dillane, actor of rare introspection". The Times. (Subscription required.)
26. GrahamGroom (2017). The Complete Book of the Commonwealth Games. Lulu. p. 118.
27. "Interview with Chris Philp, Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Croydon South". Croydon Constitutionalists. 26 November 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
28. "Obituary: Alan Ridout". The Independent. 23 March 1996. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
29. "The contents of field notebook containing the continuation of St Johns the Baptist West Wickham Taken on 1st August 1891 - Leland L. Duncan Transcribed by Frank Bamping 5 March 2001". Kent Archaeological Society - West Wickham. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
30. Clark, Martyn (27 August 2005). "Interview with Skream". Retrieved 30 June 2007.
31. "West Wickham – St Mark". Taking Stock - Catholic Churches of England and Wales. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
32. Historic England. "Unigate Dairies (1268412)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
33. "St Francis West Wickham History". St Francis West Wickham. Retrieved 13 August 2020.

Further reading

• Finch, Simon. Beckenham and West Wickham (The History Press, 1999) ISBN 978-07-524-1518-5
• Knowlden, Patricia & Joyce Walker. West Wickham Past into Present (Hollies Publications, 1986) ISBN 978-0-951-16550-8
• Walker, Joyce. A West Wickham Diary from 1086-2000 (Hollies Publications, 2000) ISBN 978-0-951-16557-7
• Walker, Joyce. Some People of West Wickham (Hollies Publications, 2005) ISBN 978-0-951-16559-1
• Walker, Joyce. Vanished West Wickham (Hollies Publications, 1994) ISBN 978-0-951-16555-3
• Walker, Joyce. West Wickham and the Great War (Hollies Publications, 1988) ISBN 978-0-951-16551-5
• Walker, Joyce. West Wickham in the Second World War (Hollies Publications, 1990) ISBN 978-0-951-16553-9

External links

• For information on the history of West Wickham
• Historical images of West Wickham